uberPOOL in Los Angeles: Our Vision for the Future

Last updated March 11, 2016

Los Angeles is famous for a lot of things: celebrities, sun-soaked beaches, and… traffic. Lots and lots and lots of traffic. And it comes with a hefty cost — not only for our general sanity, but for our economy and environment as well. In 2011, congested streets cost Los Angeles over $10 billion and pumped over 3.5 billion additional pounds of CO2 into the air.

When we launched uberX in Los Angeles in 2013, we knew that it would be a safe, reliable, and affordable transportation options for Angelenos. But we also knew we had to do more to build a transportation infrastructure that enables cities to be cleaner, greener, and more efficient.

That’s why we’re excited to announce the launch of uberPOOL in Los Angeles — the 4th city in the world, following San Francisco, Paris, and New York City, to offer this innovative ride-sharing option.

Here’s how it works: the vast majority of uberX trips in Los Angeles have a similar trip—a trip that starts near or ends near the same place and is happening around the same time. Most of these trips transport 1-2 people, leaving 2-3 empty seats.

With uberPOOL, we can match those similar trips together, leading to lower fares for riders, higher fares for partners, less traffic, and lower emissions.

Riders share the cost between them—saving up to 50% while adding only a few minutes of time per trip. Drivers spend more time earning money on longer trips, without the downtime between passengers.

The idea behind uberPOOL is simple, but the implications are pretty big. Fewer cars on the road means less congestion, fewer emissions and less time stuck in traffic. And in a city with more than 5 million cars on the road today, uberPOOL can cut the number of cars on the road in half.

That’s something we can all get behind. uberPOOL fare includes a $1.65 booking fee.